Page 105 of The Man Upstairs

My real talent wasn’t for video, though. My talent was for words.

I’d have to make sure my filthy words about her did her justice, capturing the purity of her innocence beneath the horny, needy bitch who needed to be fucked raw.

It was me who came first. She was still dripping cum from her pussy, still bound tight as I took to my knees and lapped her clean. She moaned so sweetly as I ate her out from behind, soaking my face as she came for me. And then I flipped her onto her back to do it again. Insatiable. Two bodies desperate, one body bound.

It was late when we collapsed in bed, both of us exhausted. Her hair was freshly washed coconut and her skin was soaped clean, but tonight that wasn’t enough for me. I wanted to leave more of a mark on her. I wanted my filth under her clothes when she was trying to be a good pupil in her lessons.

“Where are you going?” she asked as I pulled free of her arms and headed back to the living room.

“Be right back,” I said, returning moments later with the permanent black marker in my hand.

I pulled back the bedcovers to display her perky little tits, impressed when she stuck her chest out on instinct.

“Good girl,” I said and then wroteJulian’s little slutdown her stomach, smiling proudly as I dropped the pen on the bedside table.

She didn’t protest, grinning brightly as I got back into bed beside her.

“Yes, I am,” she said.

She didn’t wash it off in the morning, bouncing off to college like she was heading to a fairground this time, not to a bitching hell hole. Her demeanour was definitely shifting and so was mine. I needed to embrace my own soul’s calling, just as she was embracing hers.

It felt bizarrely natural when I switched on my old laptop and called up a blank page, and any hangups I thought I might have disappeared to dust the moment my fingers hit the keyboard.

I didn’t stop writing all day.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Rosie

When my friendMolly left for London all those years ago, it had felt like she’d taken my fun of studying along with her. Goodbye, for ever. But I had hope now. I had excitement about having someone new in my life here, outside of the vague circle I’d been on the outskirts of.

Instead of heading for the college gates at the end of my lessons, I took a detour to the art block.

I hardly knew my way around it, so I sat myself down on a bench by the main design block exit doors, keeping an eye on the students as they walked on by. Lola was one of the last, walking alone. She was rummaging in her satchel as she approached. She didn’t see me until I called out aheywith a smile on my face. Her smile back in return was such a relief that I leapt up from the bench, slinging my backpack on to join her on the path.

“Wasn’t expecting to see you here,” she said. “Whoa, seriously. Thanks for coming.”

That was one of the traits we must have shared, saying thank you for everything in the world, even when it wasn’t needed. She didn’t need to say thank you for me wanting to hang out with her. We walked in silence until we reached the gates, smiling at each other in that unspoken way that friends do. We waited until everyone else had passed us by before we sat on the wall at the side of the college.

“You coming up to me in the library meant a lot,” I told her. “I was so excited when I told Julian I met you. Feels like kindred spirits, a bit.”

“Tell me about it. I’ve needed one. I was crapping myself when I found you in the library, thinking you might just tell me to fuck off, but you didn’t. I told Peter all about it over dinner. He thought it was epic. We’ve both been lonely, you know? Both me and him this past year. I guess that’s normal when you’re kicked out of your whole community.” She looked at me. “Did Julian leave his family for you?”

“No, no. He left and moved across from Oxford. We’ll, actually, that’s not true. He got thrown out. They caught him cheating, except he wasn’t cheating, not really. Things with his wife were over, even though they weren’t technically. It’s complicated. Still feels weird to think he has a family out there. He always seemed to be just a guy upstairs on his own that people said to stay away from.”

I knew I was rambling, so I took a breath, cheeks burning, well aware I was spilling a lot of info to a stranger. She didn’t judge me or him, though, just nodded along.

“Peter’s past is complicated, too. It was a hard choice for him, but his wife didn’t even like him anymore. She used to dump dinner in front of him along with the kids’, and as soon as they were in bed she’d just ignore him, chatting to her friends on the phone. She went out every weekend. He’s pretty sure she was cheating. It’s one of those things I guess, though. They found out about me, and he was suddenly a piece of shit because I’m younger. They said he must have been grooming, which was bullshit. I’d been into him for years.”

“Were you the first person he fucked outside of his marriage?”

“There was one other woman, down the street,” Lola said. “Lasted a few months, but he didn’tlike herlike her. It was casual. It’s another load of ammo for people.Serial womaniser. He’ll fuck you over.”

“You trust him though, right?”

“Yeah, I trust him, completely. How about you? Do you trust Julian?”

“I trust him one hundred percent.”